Between juggling all the have-to-dos, there are few activities that we as a family can really focus on, but I know we can always find togetherness in the kitchen. One of my great joys is serving a meal that we will all appreciate equally like a huge plate of pancakes slathered in maple syrup and packed with each of our favorite things.

Tonight, I’ll take my son into the kitchen and we’ll lay out colorful little bowls filled with a handful of pancakes mix-ins. I’ll grab the Bisquick Shake n’ Pour® bottle, add a little water according to the bottle’s directions and let him shake that thing for all it’s worth.

As we make the pancakes to our liking, I can have the satisfaction of throwing some strawberries or raspberries into mine with a snowy mountain of coconut flakes and maybe a handful of nuts. He can have chocolate chip pancakes studded with crispy nubs of smoky bacon and his dad can mix in one of everything for a Dagwood-style stack of flapjacks. What I love about pancakes when prepared this way is how quickly they come together— it makes a great weeknight dinner option.

My favorite way to cook with my son is to get him up on a stool next to me. I’ll layout the pancake mix-in ingredients and heat up the griddle. We’ll stand there, side by side, considering our next steps as I pour and he directs me to sprinkle on princess sparkles (colored sugar) for Queen Foosha, his imaginary friend. It’s in that silence, shoulder to shoulder that I have the best opportunity to appreciate my sweet son. I hope these are the memories he’ll carry into his adulthood. Maybe someday he’ll spike his kids pancakes with coconut flakes, almonds and chocolate chips, just like his mama used to make. For now, I have him here, and we have this moment before the crazy have-to-dos overtake us again.